We’re going to Baños? Why do we want to go to a city named after a bathroom? My look of confusion shifted when it was explained to me that baños also meant a spa/resort type town. In fact, when I learned it was nestled between the foot of an active volcano, Tungurahua, and the Amazon Rainforest, it sounded way better than a smelly third-world bathroom! This Gateway to the Ecuadorian Amazon was a tiny jewel of a city crowned with the lush green Andes Mountains. It was about a four hour bus ride from Quito on winding roads, with llamas looking down on us from mountainside pastures.

After unloading our bags, we caught up to Maggie, a pilot we met at the Quito bus terminal, and invited her to join us in our search for a hostel. Baños sprawled out before us, jam-packed with wide-eyed backpackers, street-food vendors pushing cups of toasted corn, taffy-tossers swinging sugary ropes, ATVs gasping over narrow cobblestone, and death-dealers pitching promises of high adventure. Baños was pure unrestrained chaos, and we fed off its kinetic energy! It was Guayaquil’s Independence Day weekend, and all the vacationers flocked here making hostel pickings very slim. The five of us luckily snatched up the last room available in an affordable hostel.  It had three beds so we not only had a room for the night, but a new friend to share it with.

After we settled in our room, the five of us stumbled back out into the chilly sunset, for some grub and immediately spotted a shack roasting skewered rat-like critters simmering over a glowing bed of coal. The cuys, or guinea pigs had toothy, pained faces, crispy red skin, and claws. The sight was too good for my omnivore companions to pass up, as they each ordered up a plate of cuy with mystery gravy, over a bed of rice. Thantcyn wasn’t too thrilled with the Ecuadorian delicacy, and had some difficulty biting through the crisp tough hide that covered the bland duck-like strips of meat underneath. Luckily for me, Baños is a bit of a hippy town, with ample vegetarian options, so I opted for the ‘Hindu Plate’ from an Italian restaurant next door.

The next day we were set for high adventure! Rafting, volcano climbing, bungee jumping, and mountain biking are some of the ‘extreme’ activities you can partake in. Deenaree was feeling a bit ill, so Thantcyn and I grabbed Maggie, and ponied up $5 each for an entire day of mountain biking. We strapped on smelly styrofoam helmets, and chose a route that would take us 20 miles downhill to Cascada Pailon Del Diablo, the Devil’s Cauldron.  Maggie, a weekend mountain biker, flowed beautifully through Baños streets, while Thantcyn and I wobbled down the sidewalk scattering the locals in our path! The learning curve was as steep as the road in parts, but somehow between dodging boulders while squeezing to the side of the road for buses to pass I gasped at how beautiful the scenery was; our path followed a rushing river carving its way through green, cloud-ringed mountains.

Just when confidence started to settle upon us we zoomed into a tunnel. It felt like swimming through tar, with a faint promise light on the other side. Stay straight towards the light, was what I kept repeating in my head! Suddenly, I heard Thantcyn yelp, followed by a clattering bang! I spun around, but only the dark was there! Split-seconds turned into a heart-pounding eternity, and suddenly, light! After my eyes refocused, I saw Thantcyn jogging his bike out of the pit of hell. When a bus passed us, he swerved, slamming both his bike and shoulder against the wall. A long black smudge ran down his arm and his bike chain was dangling. Thantcyn wiped off his battle scar, and Maggie fitted the chain back on his bike, making everything right in my world again!

We zipped along, coming to a bridge of men, women, and children bungee jumpers. We stopped for a while to catch our breaths, and marveled at the speed at which each jumper was strapped in, then let go! Some kids hurtling through space seemed too young to have their training wheels off, let alone bungee bobble off a bridge!

We cycled on, now a bit more weary, until we heard a growing rumble of our destination. We perked up, and screeched into a crowded parking lot, lined with overstuffed bike stands. We squeezed our battered bikes in, snapped the lock shut, shouldered past fast-food vendors and souvenir peddlers, and trotted down slippery steps towards our roaring prize. I paused on the way down, looked up, and suddenly, magic! A perfectly benign donkey hovered above us, sprouted from tufts of green grass, chewing its cud! I was elated, snapped some pictures, and had to be prompted to move on to the thunderous end. The Devil’s Cauldron revealed itself, a barrage of white water slamming jagged black rocks!  Its rampage drowned out all sound, and its spittle cooled our tired, overheated limbs.

After the welcome breather, it was time to head on back up. I huffed and puffed up those miserable stairs in the thin mountain air. Upon reaching the top, we thankfully opted to splurge, and caught a ride back to Baños, for $1.50 each. The thirty minutes in the bed of an army truck, sandwiched between muddy bike tires, felt like a limo ride home! We got back to our hostel in time for a much needed shower, and afternoon tea.

Over tea, we became quick friends with Patrick, a brainy Belgium working for NASA, and living in Houston! With this growing band of new friends, we made our pilgrimage to see the huge paintings of “Our Lady of the Holy Water”, which depicted miracles credited to the Virgin Mary. The church housing these giant jaw-dropping masterpieces hummed with reverent prayer and shivered in blue fluorescent light. Worshippers and traveling thrill-seekers shuffle through its wings to offer flickering tributes to glassy-eyed statues of saints and saviors. After floating on glowing clouds of incense, through this magical realm, we stepped back outside, feeling peaceful, and spiritually elevated, into Baños’ wonderfully chaotic night!

Early the next day, a few hours before moving on to Guayaquil, Deenaree and I sat in steam-filled, wooden cabinets with only our heads sticking out. We wanted to experience an Ecuadorian spa treatment. The cycle was four minutes of steaming with bay leaves, followed by dragging an icy, dripping, wet towel from toes to shoulders. After the cycle, a very tiny, serious man hosed us down with freezing water. Two other heads belonging to an older French couple stuck out of neighboring cabinets. We took turns being captive audiences, and laughing at each other’s pain of being doused with cold water. It was an intense, fitting topper to our Baños adventure!